Posts Tagged ‘poll’

Which came first: the Birkenstock of the Teva? The answer doesn’t actually matter because they are both having fashion reincarnations this spring… much to the joy of some and chagrin of others. While the Birkenstock reemergence has already been happening on the low for quite some time now, the other favored sandal of the 90’s complete with velcro straps and thick flat soles has just recently filled high end department stores’ and designer boutiques’ shelves. Brands from Marni to Rebecca Minkoff have embraced and reinvented the functional over fashionable shoe with metallic leather, studs, and colorful embellishments. While they sure will make traipsing through the city a lot less painful for your feet, I’m not sure about the effect they’ll have on our eyes.

The side boob isn’t really anything new, but in the past couple of years, it’s been making a pretty strong campaign to be the new sexy skin . Could it be? Side boob the new cleavage? Somehow the side boob is sexy without being slutty. It’s suggestive without being too saucy. Celebrities have been spotted all over town letting their mammaries sneak out the side to catch some fresh air. I’m talking about good girls like Ann Hathaway and Lauren Conrad. I mean, it’s not like I’m using Lindsay Lohan as my moral compass. Even magazines have taken notice of this sneaky sideways trend and April’s covers are smattered with side boob.

This past weekend, I slipped into a new dress that was not exactly brassiere friendly. So, I snapped that baby right off and wore the dress sans support. When I gave myself a gander in the mirror, I wondered, “Is there such a thing as too much side boob?” Well, what could I do but take a quick poll on Twitter?:

Uh, Dad, if you’re reading… I absolutely wore a sweater over this. When I arrived at my destination, there were a few more young children than I had anticipated so I did keep my arms mostly glued to my sides so as to avoid any awkward nursing attempts. What did everyone else think of my free flowing friends? The general consensus was positive. Both males and females commented on my peek-a-boo sideshow. Granted, I did get a couple of not so friendly glances from a few women, but I guess that’s to be expected. It seems that the side boob is also less offensive than the over the top push up cleavage of days yore.

So, now I ask you, my lovely WhyDid readers: Is “side boob” the new cleavage? And is there such a thing as too much?

Rihanna’s hair is an ever evolving feature. She’s gone long, short, dark, light. And remember when she went red? But why shouldn’t she have some fun with her hair. She’s young, she’s creative, she’s got the best in the business fiddling with her follicles. Well, she’s made another drastic change… except this one is a bit more traditional than you might expect from Riri.

On Saturday, she was blonde a la Goldie Hawn, but yesterday posted a pic of herself on Instagram with her hair back to black. Personally, I love it. I know it’s not as crazy as some of her other ‘do’s, but it much more flattering to her skin tone and really brings out her beautiful features. Hey, blonde isn’t for everyone. Isn’t that right, Sisqo?

What a year it’s been for Adele. This 23 year old British songbird has taken home six Grammy’s and scored her first American Vogue cover… and it’s only February. I’m not sure what is going to have to happen for her year to get much better. A pony perhaps?

I’m an avid Vogue reader and I have so much respect for Anna Wintour and the team at Vogue, but I would be downright insulted to see my face morphed into what is considered “acceptable” rather than the beautiful creation it already is. There’s no denying this is a beautiful woman. Those eyes! Those lips! She didn’t really need any high tech help to look gorgeous. That’s why I would be pretty bummed out to see what was once my face staring back at me in the supermarket checkout line.

Finally young girls have a female role model who receives praise strictly from talent and hard work rather than flashing crotch to paparazzi and partying all night. Yet, here she is being “shaped” into a size that’s more palatable for the fashion elite. What are we trying to tell people? Especially women?

To act like Adele is the first and only celebrity to be Photoshopped to within an inch of her life on the cover of Vogue or any other glossy would be totally naive (Remember the Ralph Lauren scandal?). 90% of what we see in magazines or in ads is not real. It frustrates me to hear my friends and other females get so down on themselves about how they look and how they wish they were a little thinner or a little taller or a little bit more perfect because they’re comparing themselves to unrealistic standards.

I once received a photo of myself that had been Photoshopped. After I got over the initial, “Wow!” moment, I immediately felt depressed. My lips were fuller, my nose was straighter, my blue eyes more blue. I realized that this was how I’m supposed to look… if I was perfect, of course. But I’m not. And no one (not even Adriana Lima) is. We all have flaws and those flaws are what make us unique. It’s time to start embracing those instead of letting them alienate us.

Cindy Crawford was once quoted as saying, “Even I don’t wake up looking like Cindy Crawford.” I think that’s such a wonderful and honest thing to say. Maybe if more celebrities, magazines, and brands eased up on the “healing tool” and stopped “transforming” everything, we might alleviate a lot of low self esteem and bad body images.

So what do you think? Have magazines, advertisements, and fashion houses gotten out of hand with creating perfect specimens? Would you like women to start looking more like… themselves?

Recently, Cynthia Nixon (uh… Miranda on Sex and the City) revealed her newly shorn head. She’s always sported a pretty short red ‘do (did you know she’s really a natural blonde?), but this new cut is not just short, it’s GONE. Luckily, it’s not cause she went all Britney Spears on us. She lost her locks for her current role in the Broadway play, Wit, where she plays a professor undergoing experimental cancer treatment. Luckily, Cynthia happens to have a perfectly shaped head and the peachy smooth skin that can pull off this look.

She is not, however, the first leading lady to take it all off up top for a role. No, not like the casting couch… Demi Moore, Natalie Portman, and Cate Blanchett are just a few of Hollywood’s beauties who have also gone bald (voluntarily). Again, these women all happen to have the ideal domes to go without their hair. I don’t know that I would be willing to give up my tresses just to play a part, but that probably has to do with my fear of an odd shaped head lying beneath my fine follicles. Let’s just say not everyone has the ideal “bone structure” to go without. So would you lose your locks for a big role?